The scheduled progression of the Muskrat Falls project is being jeopardized by delays in the submission of documentation by Nalcor, according to a letter from the Board of Commissioners of Public Utilities.
The letter was leaked to reporters this week.
“This letter is to formally advise that the board is concerned about the schedule for the (project) review given the level of information that has been filed to date,” states the document, written by board (PUB) secretary Cheryl Blundon. It is directed to Geoffrey Young, senior legal counsel for Nalcor.
The PUB began a review of the Muskrat Falls project, as outlined in the Electrical Power Control Act, by way of an initial request for information on June 17, 2011.
Publicly, in a media release in late July, the PUB stated Nalcor made its first filing for the review on June 30, “and continues to provide information to the board.”
Yet, according to the letter, Nalcor had not yet filed its submission to the board, as required in the terms of reference for the project. The letter is dated Sept. 14.
The letter states Nalcor had said the submission would be filed by the end of July. On Aug. 2, that date was moved to late August. On Aug. 26, according to the letter, the PUB was told the date for Nalcor’s submission was “under review.” “It has now been three months since the start of the review and Nalcor has not yet filed its submission and has not advised as to when it will be filed. In addition, there are a significant number of outstanding and incomplete answers to requests for information,” the letter states.
It continues on to claim Nalcor employees attended a meeting on Sept. 12, called by the PUB as a result of the delays.
“Nalcor was unable, at that time, to confirm when it would be in a position to respond on this critical information,” it stated.
The PUB expressed concern in the letter that certain fixed dates in the progression of the project are being jeopardized. Those dates include a Dec. 30 deadline for the Board to conduct public consultations and file their report with government.
The board did not return calls from The Telegram for comment on Friday.
Meanwhile, Liberal Leader Kevin Aylward said the PUB letter is “disturbing” and further validates his party’s criticism of the Muskrat Falls project. The Liberals have blasted the PUB’s review before, saying that it was inadequate and wouldn’t cast a wide enough net to assess all the province’s electricity options.
That the PUB’s current review seems to be running into trouble, Aylward said, is just that much worse.
Speaking on the campaign trail in his home district of St. George’s-Stephenville East, Aylward said that Premier Kathy Dunderdale needs to be held to account.
“I’d like to have somebody ask Ms. Dunderdale what she thinks of it,” he said. “Really, this is her process she set up, and they can’t even get this right, on a deal this size.”
At its core, Aylward said the PUB review smacks of political expediency, and the $4.5-billion project isn’t something that should be rushed. “I guarantee you, If this deal gets done, we go off the rails on this because there was a rush to do it, because a few politicians want to get elected on Oct. 11, then a lot of people are going to be saying to themselves, how come we didn’t listen? How come we didn’t say gee, why didn’t we take a second look? Why didn’t we take our time?”
The Liberals have made Muskrat Falls a cornerstone of their election campaign; Aylward says it affects the economy and the provincial treasury, and by extension, just about every other facet of government.
The Grits say they would halt the project and do a full, independent review of all options to determine the cheapest source of electricity for ratepayers.
Dunderdale countered in an email there was no expectation that the PUB review would be complete prior to Oct. 11.
“So it doesn't even make sense to say there have been delay tactics to get past the election date. The PUB will get the information it needs and sanction of the Muskrat Falls project will not proceed without the PUB review completed,” she said.
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